LEGAL SERVICES GUIDE: Restructuring Year

Sep 1, 2009

Amid global crisis, law firms covering Latin America have seen a boom in restructuring and M&A. They are now seeking growth in other areas as markets recover.

by Ben Miller

Currency slides, derivatives blowing up balance sheets, trouble
repaying debt. All have caused problems for many companies in
markets like Mexico, Brazil and Argentina. It is no surprise
that debt restructuring should be the biggest growth area in
the past year among law firms catering to Latin American
corporate clients.

Client needs have changed substantially, says
Rafael Robles, partner at Mexicos Galicia y Robles.
Restructuring is the name of the game today, he
adds.

Lawyers responding to the 2009 LatinFinance Legal Services
Survey say debt restructuring saw the biggest leap in the past
year among practice areas in Mexico, Argentina and Chile. In
Brazil, Colombia and Peru, it trailed only M&A, which was a
runner up in the other countries. Last year, lawyers put
M&A as the biggest area in Mexico and Brazil. As can be
expected in a year with...